Wedding DIY: Part 1 | Bridal Party Proposal Cards + Bridesmaid Gifts

Happy Wednesday! Today is the day we begin the arduous but necessary documentation of all of our wedding DIY adventures. :) Because if you don’t write it down, it never happened. That’s what I tell my peeps at work. So here I am, living by my word. ;) Check back every week for another installment of the wedding adventures, if you find them interesting. Otherwise, just stop by anyway and say hi. Or don’t. Just do you. :)

Okay, so you get engaged. Then what? For me, the next step was all about the bridal party. Honest moment here, I’ve never been a courthouse wedding kind of girl. There’s just something about being surrounded by all of the people that you love for that one awesome/epic day that always appealed to me. With that, though, comes the wedding party. How big do you go? How many on each side? Do you have to have the same number on each side? If I have everyone that I want up there, will there be anyone left to watch the ceremony? Why am I asking myself these questions? etc. etc. :)

I was never the girl who sat around planning out the big day as a kid, but over the years the thought had crossed my mind a time or two as to who I would have up there next to me. And it’s changed…a lot… over the years. Friendships are a weird thing in adulthood. But I can successfully say that I got married at the right time in my life, because this particular group was spot on. No joke. Sister + soon-to-be-sister + BFF + cousin + cousin = perfect combo. Easy planning, no drama, lots of fun, lots of help with my DIY endeavors… needless to say but I’ll say it anyway – these girls are amazing!

(Photo Credit: Brooke Beasley Photography)

SO being who I am, and since apparently it’s a THING now, I had to do something at least a little bit creative to ask them. My BFF gave me a necklace and this adorable card for hers last year. I decided on nail polish and a tape measure, because I had big plans to get their measurements and make them something super special and personalized before the wedding.

Well, not all big plans work out ;) but at least they were able to use the nail polish!

For the cards themselves, I just printed them on half-page cardstock and used the cards to wrap the gifts. The original bridal party color was pink, hence the pink ribbon :)

If you happen to be at a place in your life where you need these, and they fit your situation, here’s a printable version of the cards I made (click on the image below or HERE to download the pdf file).

(Photo Credit: Brooke Beasley Photography)

When the BFF got married last year, I made a few things, including our “getting ready robes” and she asked me what I would have done it she had a bunch of bridesmaids. I told her I would have bought them instead (of course, ha)! And that’s exactly what I did here. I looked for the right fabric for a while to make them, but didn’t find what I was looking for. Then I came across these navy and white ones on Etsy. They were perfect. Exactly what I had imagined. I tried to stick with the mostly-handmade theme for the rest of the wedding as well, even if it wasn’t handmade by me :)

The rest of their day-of-the-wedding gift consisted of lip sugar treatment from Fresh, which I got on Jet.com for a great deal (have you tried that site? I’ve had pretty good luck with it for a few things I ordered for the wedding…)

Earrings from Jennifer Casady, my new favorite jewelry designer. :) I also got our mother of the bride and groom gifts from her…

And last but not least… personalized cups from Etsy also…

Gotta stay hydrated.

Funny story about those tho… I got them well before the wedding and they were all wrapped up. Then I went to the bachelorette party and my cousin had ordered almost identical cups for our Vegas weekend… :)

Great minds think alike ;)

To wrap their gifts, I used square bakery boxes, crinkle paper, and the same pink ribbon I used above that I got while in NYC at M&J Trimming. I printed their names on sticker paper and used this hand painted watercolor clipart from Small House Big Pony for decoration.